Collapsible stand or table.



W. H. .HENDERSHOTT.

COLLAPSIBLE STAND 0R TABLE. APPLICATION FILED 050.2. ms.

:Patentod Jan. 1,1918.

WILLIAM. H. HENDERSHOTT, 0F PARKERSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA.

COLLAIPSIBLE STAND 03 TABLE.

specification of Letters Patent.

v Patented Jan. 1.191s.

' Application filed December 2, 1916. Serial No. 134,727.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, lVILL-IAM H. Hnnnme sHorT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Parkersburg, in the county of Wood and State of West Virginia, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Collapsible Stands or Tables, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to tables, stands, and like articles of furniture and more particularly to foldingtablesand stands.

'- The'p'rimary object ormyinventiongis the provision of a table with a detachable top so constructed that the legs may be readily folded into a small compass and the top removed to permit the storing of the table in a small space.

A further object of the invention is to pro- Vide a construction of this character wherein the table top will hold the legs braced in quadrilateral relation to each other, the table top being detachably connected to the le s.

till another object is to so form the legs that the table may be readily lifted without lifting from the table top itself and further to so form the legs that an auxiliary shelf, pot or other object may be disposed between the legs.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a table constructed in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 22 looking toward the table top;

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the legs folded;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4-4 looking downward.

Referring to these drawings it will be seen that my improved table comprises a table top and four legs. The table top, designated generally 10, is flat on its upper face but on its under face is provided with the marginal depending flange 11 and with the four angular ribs or flanges 12. Each of the ribs or flanges 12 is right angular in form and the four ribs or flanges 12 together provide a cruciform groove 13 on the under side of the table. These ribs or flanges may be formed integral with the under side of the table or attached to the table top by means of screws if desired. Eyes 14 are attached to the table top to which hooks 15 are connected whereby the table top may be attached'to the legs as will hereafter appear. j

The legs are four in number and designated respectively 16, 17, 18 and 19. The

'legs are all of the same form and size. Each leg is cut away on its inner edge face as at 20 and preferably cut away on its outer edge face as at 21. The leg 19 is hinged to the leg 16 by means of the hinges 22 and the leg 16 111' turn is hinged to the leg 18 by meansof like hinges 22. Like hinges 22 also connect the leg '18 to the leg 17,bu't the" legs 17a'n'd "19 are not hinged to each other or in any way connected. It will be seen from Fig. 3 that the hinges 22 are so disposed upon these legs that when the legs are folded into parallel position, as illustrated in this figure, the legs 18 and 19 are out of alinement with the legs 16 and 17, and this construction provides that when the legs are turned into their operative position the legs 18 and 19 will be disposed in line with each other and abutting against each other, while the legs 16 and 17 will be disposed in line with each other but abutting against the inner ends or edges of the legs 16 and 17. Thus when the legs are turned to this position they will be very securely held and cannot move except in one direction. The legs 18 and 19 are provided with eyes 23 for engagement with the hooks 15, as is illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

In practical use when the table is set up, the legs are turned to the position illustrated in Fig. 2 and then the table top is set upon the legs so that the upper ends of the legs pi be received in the cruciform groove 13 produced on the under side of the table top, the flange 11 engaging with the end edges of the legs. This will hold the legs in cruciform relation and prevent absolutely any shifting of the legs and when the hooks 15 are engaged with the eyes 23 the table top will be held firmly upon the legs. Even without these hooks the table top will hold the legs from any collapse and the flanges will prevent the table top from shifting on the legs. The table under these circumstances may be lifted and handled by grasping the legs where they are narrowest and it will be seen that by cutting away the legs as at 20 and 21 the legs at this point are rendered relatively narrow so that they may be readily grasped. When the legs are arranged in cruciform relation, the several cut away portions 20 together form a centrally,

disposed space vertically elongated but contracted at its lower end, and an auxiliary shelf, illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 1 and designated 24, may be disposed in this space resting upon the downwardly and inwardly inclined inner faces of the legs. These downwardly and inwardly inclined faces" may be also used to support other objects.

It will be seen that this invention is very simple, that it provides a detachable top and legs which may be readily disconnected from each other, that the legs may be folded into small compass, that they may be readily opened, and that when-open they are firmly held in position and the table top. firmly held upon the legs.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

As an article of manfacture, a, table of; the character described comprising a top formed upon its under face with depending flanges, defining a cruciform groove, and a base for the support of said top'composed of four legs hinged to each other for movement into a cruciform or a parallel relation, two of the legs having a width greater than the other two legs and when in a cruciform rela- In, test mei y hereo I h r unto my signature in the presence of two witnesses, HENDER H TT- Witnesses;

E- T CEYELM ees-ea 13mm,

Copies. oi? this patent may be obtained for 'five cents each, by addressing the Q'qrnnri ssioner f Batents,

Washington, D, Q. 

